andvari49
bjd hard cap wig tutorial (Chicline size)
Although this is a small scale wig I have used the same technique to make an SD sized version. Admittedly, I'm probably the only person crazy enough to try this. :P I do like the results and for me it's worth the effort.
For the fabric of the cap I used swimwear lining. It's a very stretchy mesh that comes in white and beige. The glue is Aleene's acid-free Tacky Glue for the cap and Aleene's Fabric Fusion Glue to attach the hair. The Fabric Fusion is urethane based, clear, non-toxic, and washable so it could probably be used for the cap as well. I didn't because I only have a small bottle. I made the cap in the traditional way, with two layers of fabric, glued one layer and let dry, then stretched and glued the second layer. Where I wanted to knot the part I left a small strip bare of glue. There are other, better tutorials showing how to make the cap so I'm not going to repeat the steps. But you do need to start with the part, wherever it needs to go. I just chose the center.
1. First get a big-ass needle (you do need one with a sharp point, a tapestry needle is best).
2. Take a few hairs, get them wet, fold in half, and push the loop through the eye of the needle. This is why I'm using such a huge needle, it's relatively easier to do this with.
3. You'll want to poke your needle into the cap toward the part line. This is important, because you want the loop on the knot to face away from the part.
4-5. Believe it or not, you won't permanently distort or break the fiber of the cap doing this. The swimwear lining is very strong.
6. Pull only the loop through the cap.
7. Push the loop down onto the trailing hair.
8. Use the needle to get under the trailing hairs and pull them through the loop.
9. Once you've done that just pull the ends of the hair to tighten the loop and voila, you've made a lark's head knot.
A couple of other tips: Try to keep the glue from getting into where you want to put the part when making the cap. The knots will disappear into the cap better if there isn't any glue. Not that you can't still make the knots, the tapestry needle will go through pretty much anything, but the finished part will look much better. There are wig making tools that will make this type of knot, but they can be pricey. Needles can be found anywhere, even in the grocery stores. ^_~ Also, when making the wig cap (if it seems to shrink after knotting the part) you can just roughly trim it, knot the part, then trim to fit and finish gluing the hair.
A tip when using mohair. Because it's a stiffer fiber it may be difficult to get the knots to stay tight. Just take a toothpick with a dot of glue on the end and poke it at the base of the knot as you are going along. Alpaca doesn't seem to have the same problems being a fine hair.
Also, the four way stretch fabric comes in black. It may come in many other colors and I just didn't notice. ^^; The nice thing about using a colored cap, particularly for black hair, is it won't show as much. And luckily enough, being completely saturated with glue, it won't stain either.
bjd hard cap wig tutorial (Chicline size)
Although this is a small scale wig I have used the same technique to make an SD sized version. Admittedly, I'm probably the only person crazy enough to try this. :P I do like the results and for me it's worth the effort.
For the fabric of the cap I used swimwear lining. It's a very stretchy mesh that comes in white and beige. The glue is Aleene's acid-free Tacky Glue for the cap and Aleene's Fabric Fusion Glue to attach the hair. The Fabric Fusion is urethane based, clear, non-toxic, and washable so it could probably be used for the cap as well. I didn't because I only have a small bottle. I made the cap in the traditional way, with two layers of fabric, glued one layer and let dry, then stretched and glued the second layer. Where I wanted to knot the part I left a small strip bare of glue. There are other, better tutorials showing how to make the cap so I'm not going to repeat the steps. But you do need to start with the part, wherever it needs to go. I just chose the center.
1. First get a big-ass needle (you do need one with a sharp point, a tapestry needle is best).
2. Take a few hairs, get them wet, fold in half, and push the loop through the eye of the needle. This is why I'm using such a huge needle, it's relatively easier to do this with.
3. You'll want to poke your needle into the cap toward the part line. This is important, because you want the loop on the knot to face away from the part.
4-5. Believe it or not, you won't permanently distort or break the fiber of the cap doing this. The swimwear lining is very strong.
6. Pull only the loop through the cap.
7. Push the loop down onto the trailing hair.
8. Use the needle to get under the trailing hairs and pull them through the loop.
9. Once you've done that just pull the ends of the hair to tighten the loop and voila, you've made a lark's head knot.
A couple of other tips: Try to keep the glue from getting into where you want to put the part when making the cap. The knots will disappear into the cap better if there isn't any glue. Not that you can't still make the knots, the tapestry needle will go through pretty much anything, but the finished part will look much better. There are wig making tools that will make this type of knot, but they can be pricey. Needles can be found anywhere, even in the grocery stores. ^_~ Also, when making the wig cap (if it seems to shrink after knotting the part) you can just roughly trim it, knot the part, then trim to fit and finish gluing the hair.
A tip when using mohair. Because it's a stiffer fiber it may be difficult to get the knots to stay tight. Just take a toothpick with a dot of glue on the end and poke it at the base of the knot as you are going along. Alpaca doesn't seem to have the same problems being a fine hair.
Also, the four way stretch fabric comes in black. It may come in many other colors and I just didn't notice. ^^; The nice thing about using a colored cap, particularly for black hair, is it won't show as much. And luckily enough, being completely saturated with glue, it won't stain either.